Activist priest: Sangma is a disgrace to all of India

by Nirmala Carvalho

Interviewed by AsiaNews, Fr. Cedric Prakash, director of the Jesuit center "Prashant" for human rights, justice and peace comments on the nomination of the tribal Catholic politician and the support of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The declarations of Sangma that "absolve" the BJP for the pogrom in Kandhamal show all his opportunism.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - On July 19, India will go to
the polls to elect the new president of the country. Among the names on the
ballot, that of Purno Agitok Sangma stands out; he is a tribal Catholic and
one-time hardliner in Congress, who a few days ago said: "Where is the
evidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is responsible for the
anti-Christian pogrom in Kandhamal? Let's not jump to conclusions... Let's not
make such allegations." Words considered controversial by most of the
Indian public opinion, both Christian and non, also because it is precisely the
ultra-nationalist Hindu BJP party that is fully supporting his candidacy (see
06/26/2012, "Raghuvanshi: the BJP manipulates the Christian candidate
for president"). AsiaNews spoke to Fr. Cedric Prakash, director of
"Prashant", a Jesuit center in Ahmedabad (Gujarat) which deals with
human rights, justice and peace. According to the priest, Sangma is a disgrace
to Christian values, tribal identity and the Indian Constitution.

How do you respond to Sangma and his
statements on the involvement of the BJP in the anti-Christian pogroms in
Kandhamal?

This is the typical stand of an opportunist! If Sangma
actually cares for the rights and the freedoms of every citizen of India, he
would never do this! It will be a very sad day for the country and for the
cherished values ​​of democracy, should he be elected to be the President of
India. Sangma should carefully go through all the documented evidence on the
Kandhamal violence to to realize that there was direct involvement by the Sangh
Parivar in the carnage, with the active support of the BJP who were ruling
Orissa with the BJD (Biju Janata Dal) at
that time. The BJP has also been involved in attacks on Christians and
other minorities in Karnataka, Gujarat and other states in the country.

Sangma is being fielded as the BJP
presidential candidate. What's your opinion?

Well, this is another sad joke on the country! The BJP had
really no one to put as their candidate. And with some of the allies actually
supporting the candidate put up by the UPA (United Progressive Alliance, the ruling coalition)...two of their "allies" had
already decided to put up Sangma...so the BJP has had literally no choice in
the matter!...Putting up another candidate or not supporting Sangma...would
really mean that they were just proving themselves to be an absolutely
toothless opposition! Besides, in the future they could always say that they
supported a "Christian" and a "tribal"...groups which they
have consistently demonised and attacked all these years! And surely they will
continue their attacks in the future, too.

The BJP has a Hindu nation agenda, and in
BJP-ruled states the Sangh Parivar activists terrorize minorities. Will Sangma
reconcile these two aspects?

As I said before, Sangma is an opportunist. He really does
not care about the Hindutva agenda and what they do to the
minorities of the country... in order to have two minutes of "fame"!

What is the status of Tribals in India?
Give me your reflections on the Tribal-BJP equation.

The status of tribals all over the country leaves much to be
desired in every possible way! Sangma, the self-seeking politician that he is,
has hardly taken a stand on tribal issues... The BJP has consistently tried to
destroy the tribal identity: by calling them "vanvasis" ("forest dwellers") instead of "adivasis" ("indigenous peoples"). Accepting them as adivasis, everybody knows, would defeat their grand (yet utopian)
design of attempting to establish a Hindu nation State.

Does the 2014 general election have any
bearing on the BJP support for Sangma?

Not at all! Sangma's utterances and the way he positions
himself brings really no credit to him. He dishonors Christian values, the
tribal identity and, above all, the Constitution of India.

Personal use of the contents of this website is permitted for non-commercial purposes only. The reproduction, publication, sale and distribution of the contents of the website can only take place prior to an agreement with the publisher.
The photos on AsiaNews.it are taken largely from the Internet and therefore considered to be in the public domain. If the subjects or authors are opposed to thier use for publication purposes, they are requested to notify the editorial staff who will promptly remove the images used.